Monday, July 27, 2009

According to
legend and myth the great The “Thunder God” roars during the summer
months. Many of us do not find this hard to believe, if we have
experienced a violent thunderstorm in the Apache Junction area during
the summer. There are basically two types of storms that occur in our
area.

The first storm type brings the central
mountain area of Arizona its winter rains. These winter storms result
from the general cyclonic patterns that move across the United States
every ten days or so. These storms originate in the Aleutian Low in the
Gulf of Alaska, and can dump enormous amounts of precipitation on
Arizona below the Mogollon Rim if their course is altered by the jet
stream. These storms will generally last four or five days with steady
rainfall. This type of weather can be identified with the solid unbroken
overcast resulting from Stratus clouds. These are what we call our
winter storms and they are usually not violent in nature.

The second storm type is known as the
Monsoons. These storms bring massive thunderstorms with heavy showers,
lightning and sometime devastating winds called micro-bursts. During the
summer months most of the storms over central Arizona and the eastern
portion of the Superstition Mountain Wilderness result from warm, moist
air flowing in from the Gulf of Mexico and the Sea of Cortez. This air
moves across Texas, New Mexico and Mexico. Mountains force the moist
warm air upward forming clouds. These clouds release their moisture as
they rise. This is known as orographic lift. The massive anvil-shaped
thunderhead clouds that form over Superstition Mountain from July to
September normally combine both orographic lift and convectional
activity.

Convectional storm clouds result from
the rapidly rising and expanding of warm moist air and rapidly falling
cold moist air. Uneven heating of the earth’s surface causes
convectional activity in the atmosphere.

Lightning can be caused by the
attraction of unlike electrical charges within a thunderhead. The rapid
movement of ice and water molecules, going up and down in a thunderhead
cell, creates friction that results in an enormous amount of static
electricity being produced. A single lightning discharge can produce
about 30 million volts at 125,000 amperes. A discharge can occur in less
than 1/10 of a second. The results of a lightning strike can be
horrific.

The rapid rising and falling of warm and
cold moist air also creates violent bursts of energy. This type of
activity results in micro-bursts. These micro-bursts can develop winds,
momentarily, up to 200 mph. As the clouds build and combine they form
massive anvil-shaped thunderheads called cumulonimbus clouds. These
clouds are massive static electric generators dispersing lightning and
creating violent winds. These summer thunderstorms are extremely violent
and can be very dangerous.

It is these giant thunderheads that
dominate the sky above Superstition Mountain during the monsoon season.
The lightning produced by these storms can be spectacular. According to
most sources the safest place during a lightning storm is in an
automobile. Don’t make yourself part of a lightning rod during an
electrical storm by standing near a lone tree or on a high point. The
use of your telephone during a violent lightning storm could be your
last conversation. The same is true connecting to the Internet during a
lightning storm. Standing near or in a swimming pool is asking to meet
your maker. Boating on a lake during a lightning storm is certainly
risking your chances of living to a ripe old age. Common sense needs to
prevail during our violent thunder and lightning storms.

Most Arizona monsoon storms are
associated with two other dangerous factors: flash floods and dust. A
thunderstorm can dump three to five inches of rain over a small area in
an hour and create a massive flash flood. A flash flood near Payson in
the 1970’s claimed twenty-two campers along Christopher Creek. Many
years ago I witnessed a four-foot wall of water that roared down Hewitt
Canyon claiming a couple of trucks, horse trailers and animals. These
flash floods result from heavy isolated downpours of rain in the
mountains. There is often very little rain at the site of a flash flood.

Huge dust clouds are often associated
with Monsoon storms in the desert. Local weather reporters are often
referring to Monsoon generated dust storms as Haboob, named for the
Egyptian dust storms that blow in from the Sahara or Sinai Deserts in
North Africa.

Dust storms are extremely dangerous to
automotive traffic along our state’s highways and freeways. Extreme
caution should be used during these storms. It is recommended during
these storms to pull as far off the highway as possible and turn your
lights off. While waiting for the dust storm to blow over don’t rest
your foot on the brake pedal. Your taillights or brake lights might
attract reckless drivers wanting to follow you in the storm.

It is not difficult to see why the early
Native Americans held Superstition Mountain with such awe. If you have
ever witnessed a violent electrical storm over the mountain you can see
why. We can partially explain the phenomena today with modern science,
but the early Native Americans could only look to their Gods for an
explanation. The storms were certainly caused by their “Thunder God”
with all his might and fury.

We, as late arrivals, should still respect the awesome power of the “Thunder God.”

Monday, July 20, 2009

Prior to
roads and the horse drawn carriage the only means of travel between
Superstition Mountain and the surrounding towns was by horseback or
afoot. Since those long forgotten days little has changed within the
boundaries of the Superstition Wilderness Area. Today one must still
travel by foot or on horseback. The Department of Agriculture set aside
approximately 124,040 acres of land within the Tonto National Forest in
1939 to insure the preservation of natural wonders in the Sonoran
Desert. This wilderness was increased in size in 1984 to 159,780 acres.
Today a continuous flow of hikers and horseback riders travel these
ancient Indian and early cattle trails to experience the isolation and
tranquility of the Superstition Wilderness.

The cowboy was a significant part of
this geographical region between 1870 and 1990. Only in the last decade
or so were cattle permits removed from the Superstition Wilderness Area.
Since the first settlers arrived in this area it has been known as the
most hostile and rugged cattle range in the American Southwest. The
first cattlemen fought Indians, drought, heat, famine, disease, and
winter storms to graze their cattle in the deep canyons and on the
towering ridges of the Superstition Wilderness. A very rugged breed of
cowman evolved while taming this hostile environment.

These cattle drovers first arrived here
from New Mexico and Texas shortly after the discovery of rich mining
properties in the central mountains of Arizona Territory. Copper and
silver were first discovered around Globe just after the American Civil
War. The first cattle herds arrived around 1870-1871. The small valley
flats between the towering ridges and cliffs served as grazing range.
The discovery of the Silver King Mine in 1875 opened the region to
cattle ranching because of the tremendous demand for beef on the hoof.
This was the era before refrigeration. Robert A. Irion brought a herd
into the Superstition mountain area from Montana in 1878. He eventually
developed the Pinal Ranch (Craig Ranch) at Sutton’s Summit on U.S.
Highway 60. Sutton’s Summit is known to some people these days as “The
Top of the World.” Actually “The Top of the World” was located down the
road toward Miami about six more miles.

The sharp spines of desert flora, the
summer heat, the long droughts and the cold winters were nothing new for
these early cowbboys. Many of the cattlemen came to reap the profits
associated with providing beef for the early mining camps that dotted
the landscape of central Arizona. The miners purchased tons of beef,
making cattle raising a very lucrative industry in the Superstition
Mountain area. The somewhat mild climate, good grazing and the nearby
market convinced many of the cattlemen to stay on permanently. As the
mining industry grew so did the cattle business. The cowboy was soon a
common figure in the isolated canyons of the Superstition Mountain
region.

Hardships were very common on these
early cattle spreads. There were no permanent shelters or medical
facilities. If a cowboy broke an arm or leg his only doctor was his
partner or himself. If he picked up a stray bullet he prayed that he
could make it back to headquarters before infection set in. Infection
was the greatest killer of man and beast in those days. Survival was for
the strongest because the weak often perished.

The early cowboy’s diet consisted of
jerked beef, pinto beans, chili and hardtack. His revolver or rifle was
his constant companion. Either weapon was used against his many enemies.
These enemies could include an occasional Apache, cattle rustler,
rattlesnake, lion or bear.

A cowboy’s horse was his most important
means of survival. A solid and sound horse meant the difference between
life and death in the wilds of the Superstition Mountains. The care of
his horse was the most important chore of the cowboy’s daily routine.
Most of these cowboys had a string of five to seven horses and rotated
between them when working cattle. Providing care for these animals
required a considerable amount of time. There was always an animal to
doctor, shod, or train. A cowboy’s work day was from sun till sun and
his work was never done. There were always fences to mend, water holes
to repair, windmills to work on, stock to check, tact to care for and
every other job associated with cattle ranching.

The advent of barbed wire changed the
early cowboy’s way of life in the rugged Superstition Mountain region.
Barbed wire forever ended an open and free range. The entire range was
eventually divided off into grazing allotments. Names like Reavis, Mill
Site, Tortilla, First Water, and JF are just a few of these old
allotments. When Taylor Grazing was finally establishment the option of
open range was gone forever. The colorful and romantic life of the
cowboy so often portrayed by western writers was more fantasy than
reality.

Dane Coolidge probably portrayed the
American cowboy better than any other writer of his time. Russell, Leigh
and Remington also portrayed the cowboy on their canvases with extreme
accuracy.

A herd, including cows, calves and a
couple of bulls would be cared for by one cowboy. Most of these herds
numbered between a hundred and three hundred head. Each spring and fall a
rodeo (roundup) was conducted to gather the cattle from the open range.
The purpose of the roundup was to brand, castrate and doctor calves.
Yearling steers were generally separated from the herd and driven to the
nearest point of need. A typical roundup area consisted of temporary
catch-pens, but most often it was open ground-work without the benefit
of a corral. Open ground-work consisted of roping a wild range calf,
taking it away from its wild mother.

Then you threw the calf to the ground
without the benefit of a corral or catch pen while keeping the irate cow
at bay, you then branded, castrated, dehorned and completed other
necessary chores. The cattle drovers and cattle barons of the
Superstition Mountain area have long since disappeared. The great herds
that once grazed the region under the brand of the Clemens Cattle
Company and others have also since vanished. At the peak of the Clemans
operation more than 12,000 head of cattle grazed the eastern fringe of
the wilderness. These huge herds overgrazed and destroyed much of the
range. Through the use of careful range management techniques much of
the old range is returning to its original state. There are many
controversies associated with grazing and non-grazing within the
wilderness. Some range managers believe grazing helps to reduce
wildfires while other believed, without wildfires the soil becomes
infertile. This controversy continues among range managers today.

What distinguished a cowboy from other
working men during this period? Cowboys generally dressed a bit
different then other workers because they worked outdoors most of the
time. Large brimmed hats were common. Levi trousers, and heavy denim or
cotton shirts, and of course pointed toed high top boots with extended
heels were popular with cowboys. Cowboys often carried a rope, folding
knife, bandana, chaps, and sometimes a Winchester rifle or Colt
revolver.

Life was not easy on the open range, but
it did have its rewards. Those old range riders may not have frequented
churches very often, but they were close to their God and the work of
his mighty hand. A cowboy’s sense of freedom and free spirit was
unequaled anywhere else in the country. Cowboys rode through life
uninterrupted by the complexities of urban society. They generally
didn’t lay awake at night listening to sirens, bells and the noise of
modern traffic. Their nights were filled with silence occasionally
interrupted by the lonesome call of a coyote or other sounds of night.

The cowboy recognized the value of
sitting astride his horse and traveling with the wind in his face.
Hollywood has immortalized the free spirit of the American cowboy,
therefore helping preserve some of the ideals of our freedom. These old
time cowboys and their horses were true icons of freedom and they
definitely have a place in the history of the Superstition Wilderness
Area and Americana. Hollywood certainly captured the persona of the
American cowboy and his spirit and spread it across America.

The large cattle ranches of the
Superstition Wilderness have long since vanished from the Arizona scene.
Conservation methods did not destroy them. The high cost of operation,
limited grazing and strict controls on public grazing lands have reduced
the productivity of these once large cattle empires to almost nothing.
Feeder pens are slowly replacing the range beef of the past. Today only a
few isolated ranches survive, symbolic of a time forgotten by many.

Today men
like Billy Martin Jr., George Martin, Frank Herron and Chuck Backus try
to hang on to the tradition of cattle ranching in the Superstition
Mountain region. These cattlemen and cowboys are certainly a part of the
history of the Superstition Wilderness and our American heritage.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Clarence
Mitchell began searching the Superstition Mountain area for the site he
believed was indicated on the stone maps. He was very secretive about
all of his operations in the Superstition Mountains, unless he was
needing capital to operate. Mitchell received a big break when he
convinced a naïve free lance writer to tell the story of the stone maps
in Life magazine in July 1964. This article brought unbelievable
notoriety for Mitchell and his now famous Peralta Stone Maps.

A photograph in the article showed
Mitchell crouched down behind a rock hiding from people who he claimed
was trying to find his treasure site. The article revealed for the first
time public photographs of the stone maps. Certain markings on the maps
were covered with black tape. These photographs fired the imagination
of this nation’s treasure hunting society even though the stone maps
were not totally revealed.

Early in 1965 Mitchell released a book
he wrote under the nom de plume Travis Marlowe titled Superstition
Treasures published by the Tyler Printing Company in Phoenix. By late
1968 Mitchell had milked his golden cow just about dry. He made many
investments in the Tucson area and moved there from Apache Junction. He
and Tummilson’s widow donated the stone maps to the Flagg Foundation who
in turn loaned them to the Arizona Mineral Museum. Finally, both
Arizona and Nevada ordered Mitchell to desist selling stock in the
M.O.E.L. Corporation or he would be indicted for fraud.

The so-called Peralta Stone Maps did not
go away. The Flagg Foundation asked to put them on display. They
appeared at the Don’s Club Trek, First National Bank, Arizona, Arizona
State Mineral Museum and finally the Mesa Southwest Museum. The Mesa
Southwest Museum returned the stone maps to the Arizona State Mineral
Museum in Phoenix in the early 1990s. The State Mineral Museum continued
public display of the maps helped to perpetuate their legacy.
Eventually the Stone Maps were taken off public display. Today the
Peralta Stone Maps are on display at the Superstition Mountain Museum in
Apache Junction. They will be on display there until 2011.

Barry Storm, in 1967, wrote an article
for Treasure Hunters in an attempt to decipher the Peralta Stone Maps.
At this point you must remember, Barry Storm was the “Dean of the
Treasure Hunters” in America. Storm’s feeble attempt to explain the
stone maps led to more confusion and consternation among those who knew
the stone maps were probably a fraud. Storm’s work was followed by a
variety of writers, photographers and film makers using the stone maps
as a factual source for treasure hunting in the Superstition Mountain
area.

More than ninety per cent of the
fraudulent schemes involving the Superstition Mountains are perpetrated
with the so-called Peralta Stone Maps. Those seeking a huge return on
their investment or the super greedy are often caught up in schemes such
as those often perpetrated by the use of the Peralta Stone Maps. Con
artists are always looking for something to lure their investors with.
The only con artist successfully prosecuted by the law for using the
stone maps in a fraudulent manner was Robert Simpson Jacob better known
as “Crazy Jake.” Jacob and his various schemes have become legendary in
the Apache Junction, Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa and Scottsdale areas.
“Crazy Jake”, as he liked to be called, operated a base camp in Squaw
Box Canyon in the early days (1965-1978) then moved his operation to the
western edge of Peter’s Mesa just above Squaw Box Canyon.

When Jacob was indicted by the Arizona
Attorney General’s Office in 1986, it was estimated he had defrauded
more than thirty million dollars out of the private sector.
Investigators were able to document some nine million dollars Jacob had
acquired. Today, little or none of this money has been found or
accounted for. It is believed most of this money was spent frivolously
by Jacob. Robert Simpson Jacob was sentenced to ten years in prison and
fined $145,000. He was released in 1991 after serving three years.

Jacob, like those before him, could see
the opportunity the stone maps presented. They were impossible to
disprove therefore making their authenticity more believable.

Historians, college professors,
scientist and layman have all tried to explain the origin of these
dubious artifacts. Some of the simplest questions about them can not be
answered. For example, how old are these stone maps?

Attorney General Bob Corbin was in
Washington for a meeting and he talked to a friend of an FBI analyst who
said the maps were at least one hundred years old, however Bob never
observed any documentation supporting this

statement. He was just told that the stone maps were investigated when M.O.E.L. Corporation was being investigated for fraud.

Dr. Charles Polzer, Jesuit historian at
the University of Arizona (now deceased), believed the stone maps were
totally fraud. Polzer told me personally no amount of research can
convince him the stone maps were authentic.

However, research has developed some
interesting leads, but none of them can be properly documented. An early
Arizona periodical had a brief story about some stone maps being found
in some mountains in southern Sonora or northern Durango in Mexico.
These maps were never linked to the Superstition Mountains or Arizona.

A small segment of Arizona historians
believe the stone maps may have been used by the Baron of Arizona, James
Addison Reavis, to help verify the legitimacy of his land grant claim
to much of Arizona and New Mexico territory in the 1880’s. Reavis was a
meticulous organizer and planner.

He was also an expert forger. He changed
documents in Spanish and Mexican archives to coincide with his claim to
the Peralta- Reavis Land Grant a decade later. It would not have been
something difficult for him to have planned or used stone markers for
his fraudulent Spanish land grant. There are several historians who
suggest the stone maps may have been markers for such a purpose.

Still other stories exist as to the
origin of these notorious stone maps. Fifty years ago it was rumored
that a cowboy who lived along Queen Creek carved the stone maps and
buried them near Black Point to confuse treasure hunters. This old
cowboy did a lot of stone work for Clemans Cattle Company at the old
Upper Fraser Ranch known today as the Reavis Ranch. The story is that
this old man was a stone engraver at a cemetery back East and gave up
the job to become a cowboy in the West.

If indeed the Peralta Stone Maps were
authentic the United States Government would have confiscated them under
the Antiquities Act. Today, if indeed, they are as old as many claim
and are of Spanish origin they would be in a museum in Washington D.C.,
not where they are today. If these stones were what some many claim they
would be a national treasure.

As you can
see this is just another explanation for the infamous and notorious
Peralta Stone Maps. The stone maps have created as many enemies as they
have friends. The Peralta Stone Maps will survive as long as there are
those who follow in the “Footsteps of Coronado’s Children.”

Monday, July 6, 2009

The topic of
the Peralta Stone maps have been one of the most interesting subjects
associated with the Superstition Mountain area. These four stone maps
maps continue to mystify and confuse those who try to interpret them.
The greatest amount confusion involving these maps is associated with
their origin and whether they are genuine or not.

The origin of these stone maps is
dubious at best and still causes heated discussions among historians and
treasure hunters. Stories about the stone maps vary from storyteller to
storyteller as to their authenticity. Many periodicals have been
written about the Peralta Stone Maps over the past three decades without
any conclusive or sound evidence pointing to their origin or meaning.

Old “Doc” Ludwig G. Roscrans told me he
saw the stone maps about three weeks after they were discovered near
Florence Junction in 1949. He said he talked to the Mexican bracero
(migrant worker) who had discovered the maps originally and then sold
them to a tourist from Oregon.

Today there are many versions of this
story. Bob Ward took me to a location east of Black Point, pointed to a
hole and said that was were the stone maps were recovered. Bob arrived
in the area about 1958. The strongest oral evidence suggests the maps
were discovered near Black Point. However, all of this information is
based on subjective testimony.

The stone maps are an excellent piece of
art in many respects. It is obvious whoever carved the stone maps was
familiar with carving in stone. There are those who claim the stone maps
are made of material that can not be found in this area. The stone
maps, according to some, are made out of soft sandstone more conducive
to the Colorado Plateau region in northeastern Arizona than the desert
areas around the Superstition Wilderness Area. However, there are some
very soft pseudo-sandstone rock near Oak Flats between Superior and
Miami that might have yielded the material for these maps.

Robert G. Garman knew the Mexican
bracero who was working for John Hart building a fence near the north
bank of Queen Creek east of the highway (U.S. Highway 60-70), who made
the original discovery. The fence was aligned east to west near Black
Point. The bracero, while setting post for this fence, noticed an
unusually large flat stone in the side of his post hole. He worked the
stone lose and found it had cryptic writing on it. He also recognized a
Spanish word. He also noticed the rock was covered with Indian
petroglyphs and some Spanish markings. Not understanding the
significance of his discovery the Bracero hauled the stone to Florence
Junction, a few miles away. He planned on selling the stone to a passing
tourist for a few dollars.

He arrived at Florence Junction after
walking and lugging the flat stone some three miles. He borrowed a water
hose at the service station and washed the stone off, carefully
preparing it for a curious tourist. He found such a person in Robert G.
Tummilson of Portland, Oregon. Tummilson, a retired police officer,
examined the rock and decided a fair price would be $10.00. This was
almost a week’s wages for the Mexican laborer. Tummilson was now the
proud owner of a stone with some cryptic writing on it. After this
interesting purchase Tummilson continued his journey on to Phoenix to
visit his brother. Once at his brother’s house Tummilson decided to wash
the rock thoroughly and re-examine it. Tummilson and his brother
immediately recognized this was no ordinary petroglyph of Native
American origin, but some kind of coded map in Spanish.

The two brothers were convinced this
stone slab was Spanish or Mexican in origin. The so-called Peralta Stone
Maps have changed hands several times over the past fifty years. These
mysterious slabs of rock have been called frauds by historians.

There are claims the stone maps were
found on the Gila River near Dos Lomas. If indeed these stone maps were
found by the Tummilson brothers as they claimed and if a Mexican bracero
actually found them, why wasn’t the discovery better documented with
more photographs, notes and field sketches? Tummilson was a retired
police officer trained in accurate note taking and crime scene
preservation. The lack of evidential commitment at the discovery site of
the stone slabs seriously damages the authenticity of the discovery.
There is a counter argument to evidential commitment at the site. It
could be, according to Garman and others, Tummilson wanted to control
all information disseminated about the stone maps. This is not a sound
argument in itself because Tummilson had no idea what he had discovered.
He did not know if they were authentic or fraudulent.

Not all of the foregoing information was
supplied by Robert L. Garman. Some of the information came from Ludwig
G. Rosecrans and others interested in the stone maps. Doc Rosecrans had a
copy of the photograph of the maps on Tummilson’s car given to him by
Tummilson himself. Tummilson died and the stone maps eventually ally
changed hands. The stones emerged again in the early 1960s. There were
very few people who knew about the stone maps existence prior to1962.

Clarence O. Mitchell met Tumilson’s
widow and was able to convince her he could decipher the stone maps.
Once Mitchell had the stone maps in his possession he decided from
Kollenborn, A-4 to form a stock investment corporation based on solving
this mystery. Mitchell and his wife organized the M.O.E.L. Corp. in
Nevada and began a stock selling campaign among their friends and close
associates.

The M.O.E.L. Corp. soon flourished when
Mitchell convinced investors he needed money to search for the treasure
indicated by the stone maps. According to documents Mitchell and his
wife raised more than $70,000 over a two-year period. They were so
successful in Nevada they decided to branch out into Arizona.

Next week, Part 2.

Be sure to
visit the Superstition Mountain Museum and see the Peralta Stones for
yourself at 4087 N. Apache Trail State Rt. 88, Apache Junction. For more
information call (480) 983-4888

Welcome to the Kollenborn Chronicles

Tom Kollenborn is a noted author and historian of the Superstition Wilderness. He is also one of the leading experts on the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine legend and has written numerous articles and books about the Apache Trail and related history. Tom shares his experience with the public every week in the Apache Junction News with a publication called the "Kollenborn Chronicles.” This website is made possible because of Mr. Kollenborn's extensive research and dedication of preserving the history of the Superstition Wilderness and the historic Apache Trail of Arizona.